Thai Crunch Salad with Peanut Dressing
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Inspired by California Pizza Kitchen’s famous version, this Thai crunch salad recipe is a colorful, satisfying mix of fresh veggies and creamy peanut dressing. It’s pretty much what salad dreams are made of.
Photo by Alexandra Grablewski (Chronicle Books, 2018)
This recipe is a nod to the popular Thai crunch salad served at California Pizza Kitchen. It’s made with crisp Napa cabbage, crunchy vegetables, and edamame, but it’s the creamy peanut dressing that makes it so good. I guarantee you’ll want to put it on everything!
Serve this salad as a light lunch or pair it with grilled chicken or steak for a more substantial meal. It also pairs nicely with chicken satay or honey, lime and sriracha chicken skewers. This is one of those recipes with a long list of ingredients but don’t let that deter you; you can use many of the prepared vegetables available at the supermarket, and the dressing is quickly puréed in a blender.
“This salad was such a big hit at dinner last night that my guest requested seconds. It’s so over-the-top delicious that it’s insane!”
Step-By-Step Instructions
Step 1: Make the dressing. Combine all of the dressing ingredients except for the cilantro in a blender and blend until completely smooth. Chopping the garlic and ginger first prevents the dressing from being gritty or uneven, especially if your blender isn’t super powerful. Add the cilantro.
Blend for just a few seconds until the cilantro is finely chopped. (Adding it at the end keeps the dressing a creamy, natural color instead of muddy green.)
Step 2: Combine the veggies. In a large bowl, combine the cabbage, carrots, bell peppers, cucumber, edamame, scallions, and cilantro. Seeding the cucumbers is key for keeping the salad crisp and avoiding excess water that can dilute the dressing.
Step 3: Dress and serve. If you’re serving right away, drizzle the peanut dressing over top and toss to coat. Otherwise, store the chopped veggies and dressing separately—the veggies will keep for 2 days and the dressing for up to a week. The peanut dressing may thicken slightly as it chills, so give it a good stir (or a quick whisk) if you’ve made it ahead.
More Asian-Style Salad Recipes You May Like
Thai Crunch Salad with Peanut Dressing
Modeled after CPK’s Thai crunch salad, this salad has bright veggies, bold flavors, and a dressing you’ll want to eat by the spoonful.
Ingredients
For the Peanut Dressing
- ¼ cup creamy peanut butter
- 2 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice, from one lime
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2½ tablespoons sugar
- 2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- 1-inch square piece fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped (see note)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro leaves
For the Salad
- 4 cups chopped Napa cabbage or shredded coleslaw mix (I like to toss in a little shredded red cabbage for color)
- 1 cup prepared shredded carrots
- 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced into bite-sized pieces
- 1 small English cucumber, halved lengthwise, seeded and thinly sliced
- 1 cup cooked and shelled edamame
- 2 medium scallions, thinly sliced
- ½ cup loosely packed chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
- For the dressing, combine all of the ingredients except for the cilantro in a blender and process until completely smooth. Add the cilantro and blend for a few seconds until the cilantro is finely chopped. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
- For the salad, combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and toss to combine. If serving right away, drizzle the peanut dressing over top and toss; otherwise, serve the dressing on the side so the salad doesn't get soggy.
- Here's some easy guidance on how to peel, grate, and chop fresh ginger.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (4 servings)
- Serving size: Approximately 2 cups
- Calories: 282
- Fat: 18 g
- Saturated fat: 2 g
- Carbohydrates: 28 g
- Sugar: 17 g
- Fiber: 6 g
- Protein: 7g
- Sodium: 505 mg
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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This salad is a winner…..delicious and beautiful with all the colors…thinned dressing with a little water and it was just right, served with the Honey Lime Sricachi Chicken Skewers….yummm
Had my eye on this one for a while! Why did I wait so long?! It was refreshing, lite and the ginger gave it great zing. A keeper. I used Persian cuke..no big seeds! Thanks for the recipe!
I love this salad! It’s a favorite in my meal planning.
This salad was so easy to make and SO GOOD! I made it a few weeks back and even my husband, who doesn’t like even the slightest “ethnic” food, loved it! Going to make it again tomorrow for a group of friends coming over.
This is the first of many reviews I’m long overdue to write! This salad is just absolutely a keeper and sure to impress all! The dressing came a little thick but was quickly resolved by adding a touch more oil, but even then it thins out quickly when mixed in. Even my 3 year old who prefers only foods that resemble crackers or bread these days was quite enthused by the rainbow of beautiful colors!
Jenn! I am such of fan of this salad! I devoured the majority of it! You are so right, the dressing is fantastic. My husband made fun of me and said I was using the salad to garnish the dressing. I think that salad part is good too regardless of what he said. =) Thanks for posting this!
Wonderful! We have a peanut allergy in the family so I had to leave the peanut butter out of the sauce, but it was still delicious. My family enjoyed it, and it worked well as a side for the Thai Minced Chicken Lettuce Cups.
Hilary, try using tahini or almond/cashew/brazil nut butter, or a mixture. Yum!
We all love the Thai Crunch salad! So fresh, healthy and incredibly delicious. I always double the recipe and save the dressing on the side so we can enjoy this salad all week long. Thanks for the great recipes. They are always spot on! Sue
I made this salad for friends last night, it was so good 😀 At first I also thought my dressing was too thick (it looked different to your pic) but it tossed into the salad and coated everything really well. Plus you’re right about it becoming more watery when mixed through. I used chickpeas instead of edamame beans because I have no idea where to find them in Cape Town 😉
This dressing is delicious! I’ve been overpaying for salads out for lunch, and am thrilled to be able to recreate them myself. I left out the cilantro (because I’m one of THOSE people…) and it’s still great!